Health care reform

It's time to scrap the current proposed health care reform legislations and start over. For the past few months we have heard the government-run option for health care described as a socialist plot, doomed to failure. Yet, when you turn 65, you find that exact type of program has magically turned into a well run, highly efficient system for delivering quality health care, called Medicare. Like many of you I'm in the Medicare system and, from what I hear, the vast majority of those of us over 65 are very happy with the health care we receive, I know I am.

The best option to reduce costs and provide quality health care to the most people is to expand Medicare to cover those under 65. Including a younger group, who are generally healthier than us older folk, would actually reduce the per capita expenditures for Medicare. I certainly spent less time visiting doctors and took far less medications in my younger years. If the per capita contributions remain the same and the expenditures go down, it would benefit all of us.

The expansion could be done gradually, include those 55 to 65 years of age first, then 45 to 55 and so forth. Likewise, individual costs such as monthly contributions, co-pays, etc. could, if necessary, be adjusted for age.

An issue often raised in opposition to government run health care is the potential for excessive waiting times for service due to an overloaded health care system. This is simply not logical. The folks coming in to the government run program would either have had private insurance or have no insurance. If they had private insurance they are already seeing doctors and using health care facilities. If they had no insurance, they were likely to delay seeking any medical care until their situation required emergency care, resulting in much greater cost and adverse impact on medical resources than would otherwise be needed.

It seems to me that the health care system that works very well for the over 65 crowd should also work well for those under 65.

Torsten Rothman
Lake Placid